Here's a link to the transcript from the investor conference call. See page four for comments about variable marketing costs being ten percent of net sales ... that's the total flex that Blue Nile has in their business model --- worse than catalogers, far better than retailers.
This is where magic happens, folks. We've never truly been asked to drive e-commerce sales increases ... everything we've accomplished has been on the updraft of a channel that cannibalized other channels.
Now we get busy. Now we innovate. And we'll be much better off for going through this experience. We are going to invent truly new and effective methods for driving online sales. Really!
Here's what Forbes has to say about Blue Nile, ranked # 42 in Forbes' 200 Best Small Companies" ...
ReplyDelete"It used to take as much courage to walk into a jewelry store as it took to walk into a car dealership. But Blue Nile has done away with shoppers' anxiety and pushy salespeople. Through its Web site, the company offers customers a hassle-free way to shop for and compare diamonds and other fine jewelry in the comfort of their own home."
So, putting 2 and 2 together: Even well-run, smallish, nimble, lean businesses are not immune to the slings and arrows of this recession.
Go figure,
Harry Joiner
EcommerceRecruiter.com
You bet!
ReplyDeleteAnd that's exactly the point, now that there is negative economic headwind, all of the really talented online marketing folk are going to get a genuine chance to shine